Ahmad's Truck
Ahmad's truck is a symbol of how he holds himself apart from the world because when he drives, he looks down upon everyone; it also is a symbol of how he has a duty to focus on his own world and values because he observes cars in a different way than they observe him, and he feels he has a stronger responsibility. The truck also shows how he has a burgeoning sense of self and represents how he is influenced by only one person at a time throughout the book; after all, the carriage can only fit him and someone else. His post-graduation summer is spent in the truck and we learn about the truck through his comprehension of its symbolic meaning.
New Prospect as allegory
The city in which the action of Terrorist takes place is an allegory for entropy. Throughout the novel, the second law of thermodynamics is mentioned, which states that the state of the universe only becomes more disordered. Older characters exist as the younger ones would not have imagined, and the novel contains many passages which showcase how the world of the novel abandons certain forms of coherence. The lengthy introduction to New Prospect and sustained reference to it as a decaying city serves as an allegory for how the external world leaves old things behind and how something changes both internally and externally.
Motif of Earnestness
Earnest behavior is a motif throughout the book. It is so in large part because the desire to take things seriously is intrinsic to Ahmad's character; thus, he notices when others do not strive to the lofty ends he focuses on. The alienation between him and those unwilling or unable to believe things as firmly as he does is enhanced when they try to reach out to him by devaluing the pieces of their systems of belief that separate them from him. Throughout the novel, we are reminded of the gap between intention and action as we see the results of Ahmad's labors.
Allegory of Trucking
Ahmad's quest to learn to drive a truck mirrors how someone who struggles to be moral does not always understand how these moral actions will be taken by the rest of the world. He is not yet trusted with the full machinery of trucks, yet he studies how to handle hazardous materials and trips across state lines regardless. He masters an internal situation, but the wills of others dictate how he applies these efforts. He only looks once to determine what he delivers, and it shows him how much one's actions can be used for bad things without their consent.
Motif of Terrorism
The terrorism motif throughout the novel illustrates the difficulty in dealing with disagreement about a society that is flawed at a deep level. Those involved in terrorism are not always given the rights of other Americans - Charlie mentions how those kept in the Guantanamo Bay prison are not afforded due process - and this restriction can lead members of populations to take drastic action. However, the actions of terrorism are extremely inhumane and subject individuals to punishment for actions they did not commit and might not agree with. The urge to act in a manner so incongruous with the ideals of kindness and harmony often develops over time, and this motif is seen more and more as the novel continues. This builds to the strong exhibition of the concept in the last 50 pages, in keeping with the novel's title.
